Summary

The Foals qualified for the UEFA Champions League by finishing fourth.

Recovering from one of the worst starts to a season by any club ever, Borussia Mönchengladbach ripped the form guide and the history books to shreds by climbing the table and clinching European football for the fifth time in six years.

Season in a nutshell

Glabach came into the season off the back of a spectacular second half to the previous campaign, which had them top of the shots in terms of points won in the calendar year. That had inspired them to third place and there was a glowing sense of optimism at Borussia-Park, before five successive defeats at the start of 2015/16 darkened the mood considerably. Lucien Favre, the architect of their recent success, drew his own conclusions by leaving and Andre Schubert took the reins. The new head coach won his first six games in charge and the Foals notched a remarkable 29 points from a possible 36 up to the midway stage of the season.

Fourth going into the Rückrunde, that is where they finished up too. A less dramatic few months saw just a few fluctuations, with Borussia solid at home but inexplicably poor on their travels. Considering their miserable start to the campaign, though, finishing fourth and earning another shot at UEFA Champions League football next season is a remarkable achievement.

Top three games

MD15: Borussia Mönchengladbach 3-1 FC Bayern München

Schubert's tenth game as Gladbach coach was arguably his biggest challenge yet. With seven wins and two draws from the previous matches, Borussia were full of confidence and while they surprisingly played with a five-man defence, the Foals hit Bayern with force on the counterattack. They rode their luck in the first half, but after the intervial Oscar Wendt, Lars Stindl and Fabian Johnson tore Bayern apart in 14 second-half minutes, with Franck Ribery's late strike merely consolation for the hitherto seemingly invincible Bayern.

After an even first half, Borussia stepped up the gears in the second 45 minutes, flexing their muscles with both Raffael and Hahn on target twice and Mahmoud Dahoud finishing off a particularly impressive day at the office.

MVP

There were plenty of impressive performances among the ranks, with Dahoud showing further glimpses of his earlier promise by chipping with five goals and nine assists, and Hahn celebrating a particularly impressive first season at the club. Yet but one man who seems to be getting better and better with age is Raffael, who is our choice as Most Valuable Player. With 13 goals and ten assists, the Brazilian once again made a telling contribution to another successful season, while his link-up play was a fundamental feature of the side's swift, counterattacking style.

What is next?

With Martin Stranzl ending his career and experienced campaigner Roel Brouwers also moving on, Gladbach will be in the market for at least one seasoned centre-back as a replacement, while this summer is also the first real opportunity for Schubert to bring in the players he wants to implement his style. Gladbach have not yet announced when their pre-season training will start, but they will be participating in the Uhrencup between 13-15 July and will have a training camp at the Tegernsee lake near Munich from 16-22 July ahead of their Champions League play-off in August.

Andre Schubert has the summer to build the squad that matches his philosophy.

Personal Highlight

bundesliga.com reporter Tobias Gonscherowski was taken from ecstasy to agony as he followed Hahn's first season at Gladbach first hand. Just a week after netting a brace on Matchday 9 against Frankfurt, the 26-year-old attacked was ruled out for half of the season due to injury. He returned to score on his return against Hertha. "I can't describe my feelings," said Hahn at the time. "I've just got to let it all sink in."